24
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Dvaita vs Advaita vs Vishistadvaita vs Shuddhadvaita vs any other
Q. I hear these terms Dvaita, Advaita, Vishistdvaita, Shuddhadvaita, and may be any other XYZdvaita, etc in most of the questions but I am not very sure what do they refer to.
There are six Darshan (...
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20
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What is the validity of Authoritativeness of vedas?
Purva Mimamsa School in it's Purva Mimamsa Sutras gives very logical arguments to prove Eternity of Vedas. Actually these Arguments can also be used against Nastika school who hold Vedas are not ...
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19
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I want scripture-based explanation for "God is Everywhere"
Vedas state "Sarvakhalvidam Brahman" which means "Everything is Brahman." So, everything is Brahman in the absolute level. Chandogya Upanishad states:
सर्वं खल्विदं ब्रह्म तज्जलानि...
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17
votes
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What are all doctrines or philosophies discussed in Brahma Sutra?
Here are the main philosophical schools discussed by Vyasa in the Brahma Sutras (which you can read here:
Vedanta: The Brahma Sutras are the defining text of Vedanta school, so in some sense all the ...
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13
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Why isn't there one Absolute Reality?
Q. In the annals of Sanaatana Dharma why isn't there One Absolute Reality? Every "seer of truth" saw/interpreted the way they saw it.
Absolute Reality is only one but it is expressed differently ...
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13
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Who is Ishwar according to Advait Vedanta - Lord Shiva or Vishnu?
Pure Advaita considers forms of God as unreal. Thus it does not matter what name the unreal Ishvara is called.
Shankara considers Isvara or Brahman with attributes as ultimately unreal. He writes in ...
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12
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How do Dvaitins and Vishistadvaitins interpret this passage of Mahabharata?
You quoted from the Mahabharata this passage of text:
Meanwhile, the righteous-souled Suka, who had entered the
elements, had become their soul and acquired omnipresence,
answered his sire by ...
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12
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Why did Vedvyasa mention his shishya Jaimini's opinion/saying in Brahma Sutra?
It's because Vyasa and Jaimini were working together. Vyasa and two of his disciples, Jaimini and Kasakritsna, together composed a unified work called the Mimamsa Shastra, designed to analyze the ...
- 98.2k
12
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Why do sanyasa scriptures degrade women?
Sanyas Upanishads were written for male spiritual aspirants and thus talk of women being dangerous to males. Women are allowed to be monks. Just as women are dangerous for men who are spiritual ...
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12
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Can't Shudras read the Bhagavad Gita?
There are no specific restrictions for reading and understanding Bhagavad Gita based on castes, differentiation apart from two cases, where Krishna himself emphasizes on to whom this Gita knowledge ...
- 3,481
11
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Which scripture describes six kalyana gunas (auspicious attributes) of Vishnu?
Vishnu Purana in 6.5.74 states:
"ऐश्वर्यस्य समग्रस्य धर्मस्य यशसरिश्रयः।
ज्ञानवैराग्ययोश्चैव षण्णां भग इतीरणा ।।"
Complete splendor, virtue, glory, opulence, knowledge, dispassion - these ...
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11
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What are Vivartavada and Ajatavada?
1. Vivartavada:
Sanskrit word विवर्त means [1] transformation, more precisely [2] apparent form in Vedanta philosophy. Vivartavada means the doctrine of apparent transformation.
According to Adi ...
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11
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Why did Adi Sankaracharya compare the color of Ishwara's eyes to that of monkey's nates?
First of all, here is the Chandogya Upanishad verse in question:
tasya yathā kapyāsaṃ puṇḍarīkamevamakṣiṇī
tasyoditi nāma sa eṣa sarvebhyaḥ pāpmabhya udita
udeti ha vai sarvebhyaḥ pāpmabhyo ...
- 98.2k
11
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What is the means of attaining Moksha according to the different Astika schools?
Let me address each of the six Astika schools:
Samkhya: The Samkhya school believed that meditation on the 25 Tattvas, i.e. Purusha or soul, Prakriti or matter/energy, and the 23 evolutes of Prakriti,...
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11
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How many people have written commentaries on Brahma Sutras?
There are at least 34 commentaries. Let me try to enumerate as many commentaries as I can. Note that I'm only naming one commentary from each commentator, even if they wrote multiple. And for the ...
- 98.2k
10
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Why isn't there one Absolute Reality?
Absolute reality is one but as it beyond level of mind several philosophy try to discuss it in their own way so there arise many interpretations.
Actually this question is addressed in Suta Samhita ...
- 48.7k
10
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Why isn't there one Absolute Reality?
Why isn't there one Absolute Reality?
The ultimate reality is indeed one. But it is known by different names.
Suparnam viprAh kavyo vachobhir ekam santam bahudhA kalpayanti.
..........
...
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10
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Who was the solar dynasty king who was turned into a spider?
The spider in question is a Shiva Gana named Malyavan.
The Chola dynasty of kings is said to have sprung from the Surya Vamsa, at least according to this Wikipedia page.
The last king to be mentioned ...
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Why is Sankaracharya accused as Pracchana Bauddha (crypto-buddhist) by many Vedantins?
It is very natural that Vaishnavas do not like Sankara's interpretation of Vedanta. You can read my answer to another question here:
Did Shankara reject some doctrines of Atman or Brahman in order to ...
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10
votes
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Why self realization doesn't imply omniscience?
Nice question!
Since you have mentioned 'Advaitavaad' in your question I'm answering from Adi Shankaras Advaita perspective.
Yes, Self realization doesn't imply Omniscience.
It is because in ...
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10
votes
What are the Vedas technically? How can Upanishads be called Vedas when some parts are neither revelations nor hymns dedicated to any specific deity?
As I've mentioned in my this answer, Though Brahmana, Aranyaka & Upanishads are not hymns heard (or seen) by ancient Rishis in Tapasya, they are considered to be forming the part of Vedas. ...
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10
votes
Who is Ishwar according to Advait Vedanta - Lord Shiva or Vishnu?
What is Ishwara?
According to Sarva Vedanta Siddhanta Saara Sangraha (You can get Sanskti-Hindi version from Internet Archive).
verses 310-317 Ishvara
॥ १४ ॥ ईश्वरः॥
मायोपहितचैतन्यं साभासं ...
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10
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Why does Sankhya consider Prakriti as the root cause?
No. Avyakta (unmanifest) is root cause of all in Samkhya Philosophy, which itself has no cause (अहेतुमत् Ahetumat). This is explained well in Samkhya karika of Iswarakrishna.
Karika 10 says (...
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Do scriptures give a method to recognize a truly self-realized person/jivanmukta?
Dattatreya, among others, is an ideal example of a Jivanmukta. He was always associated with wine etc and a filthy lifestyle.
Why is that?
Because Jivanmuktas don't want the masses to come to them. ...
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10
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Types of Dukkha
I think you are talking about the 3 types of miseries/pains/sufferings collectively known as - the tApatrayas.
It is said that we suffer from 3 types of miseries (or Dukkha in your language) in this ...
- 112k
9
votes
What scriptures describe the fifth state called Turiyatita?
Turiyatita state is mentioned in Malinivijay Tantra chapter 2.
Lord Shiva said:Wise people should know the system of unification (Sarvavesha krama) divided into five states i.e, waking (Jagrat), ...
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9
votes
Why does the Jiva reside in Brahman during deep sleep?
It is explained in the Chhandogya Upanishad - Aadhyaya-6, Khanda-8.
What is the Sushupti actually and why do we experience it?:
उद्दालको हारुणिः श्वेतकेतुं पुत्रमुवाच स्वप्नान्तं मे सोम्य
विजानी...
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